A nice cold pumpkin juice
by Masks and Teapots
Summary: A random one-shot about Hannah Abbott, age 25, working at the Leaky cauldron. Sort of sequel to "Janus Thickey Ward". The title is fairly random.


AN:

This is a follow-up of sorts to Janus Thickey Ward, and is the second part to the "Happiest Moment in their lives challenge". The new challenge was to write about our character (mine was Hannah) at age 25. While her age isn't directly mentioned here, we have Ginny's second pregnancy, which according to my calculation was when Harry (and therefore Hannah too) was 25.

Because I had a huge writer's block, I used Gail Carson Levine's "Writing Magic" to unblock myself. If you're an aspriring writer and want to improve your writing, you must get this book. And you'll see in the first chapter already what bit of this fanfic was inspired from it.

Now, on with the story.

* * *

><p>If somebody didn't do something soon, they were going to have a catastrophe on their hands.<p>

Hannah understood Tom's need to feel like he was still in control at the Leaky Cauldron, she really did. But the truth was, he could barely see anymore; the few injuries he'd suffered during the war were more painful than ever; and frankly, he wasn't quite making sense most of the time.

Being the pub where Harry Potter hanged out after work could only bring them so much business when everything else – from the stale Butterbeer to the overdue Pumpkin juice – was going downhill. Simply, they were going to go bankrupt.

She'd tried gentle hints ("Oh, Tom, I think you mixed up this batch of Butterbeer with the one we had to throw away"); less gentle hints ("Tom, it looks like there's something wrong with your cooking today..."); downright rudeness ("Tom, the bar is filthy, when's the last time you cleaned it?"); but Tom seemed content at the Leaky Cauldron, and had decided to stay where he was.

The Goblins were due to start collecting debts soon, and the pub would go out of business, and where would Hannah go? It was fine to be a Hogwarts drop-out when your name was Harry Potter – but she wasn't sure anyone would hire simple Hannah Abbott with five OWLs and no NEWTs. She was counting her Sickles and Knuts, trying to help her father make ends meet, not to mention that since Neville had quit the Auror department to study advanced Herbology, he wasn't bringing in much money either. On top of that, even though they had been out of St Mungo's for a few years, Neville's parents were still completely dependent on them. The War-Hero pensions the Ministry gave them didn't begin to cover the cost of their care.

So, more than a matter of pride, it had become closer to a matter of keeping a roof over her head for Hannah to make Tom see the truth: he simply had to retire. By yesterday.

She smiled at Bill Weasley passing by with his eldest daughter (was it Victoria? No, it was something more French) in his arms. More and more, the main use for the Leaky Cauldron had been as passage to the Muggle World, and for the public floo. She wished Bill would stop for a pint and a chat.

"Long day?"

She hadn't seen that his sister Ginny was just behind him. She was huge, already towards the end of her second pregnancy, yet wearing it much better than most witches Hannah knew.

"You can say that again," Hannah said with a smile. "Can I get you something to drink?"

"A nice, cold Pumpkin juice would be just wonderful right now."

"How are things in the Potter household?" She saw an old witch down at the counter listen in and rolled her eyes. Amazing what the mention of the name "Potter" could still accomplish.

"As crazy as you'd expect them to be. We're having Teddy full time right now; his grandmother is feeling ill. James is as tiring as you'd expect a toddler to be, and this one" – she pointed at her belly – "is an active one. He's been playing with a Bludger in here."

"It's a boy, then?"

"I think so – I don't know why, but I'm almost certain it's a boy. Which, with two boys in the house already – three if you count Harry, which you should, most of the time – makes me understand why my mother wanted a little girl so badly."

Hannah passed the pumpkin juice and poured herself a glass too.

"Do you expect to start playing Quidditch again after you have the baby?"

"I don't think so. I start playing again after I had James, because it felt right, but right now, I can't really say I feel like flying around Bludgers any more. But at the same time, I love Quidditch so much, I still want to work in that field, you know?" Ginny looked thoughtfully in her glass. "Oh well. I'll figure something out. What about you? What's new?"

Hannah almost gave her the standard cheerful answer she'd been giving everyone for weeks, before remembering that Ginny was the sneakiest Gryffindor she'd ever met. Maybe she could help.

"I'm trying to get Tom to retire before we go bankrupt. He's not getting my hints."

"Oh," Ginny said simply. Hannah had a suspicion she knew perfectly well that Tom was slowly losing it.

"Have you told him in so many words?" Ginny asked.

"What do you mean?"

"Have you told him: 'Hey, Tom, you're getting old, it's time for you to retire and let someone younger take care of the pub!'"

"Ginny! I could never do that!"

Ginny snorted.

"That's why you have friends like me."

She got up from her stool (slowly, as her belly had her slightly off-balance) and walked towards the kitchen. She opened the door, and without so much as a hello, announced:

"Hey, Tom, don't you think it's time for you to retire and let Hannah run the Pub? Harry said you served him stale Butterbeer twice last week!" She delivered the sentence with the sweetest smile in the world – the same one that had left the Boy-Who-Lived a puddle at her feet.

"Oh?" Tom's face was even more crinkled than usual. "Well, we can't have that, can we? What do you say, Hannah, do you want to run the pub?"

Hannah was speechless, wondering whether all that was really happening. She nodded, silently.

"Well, that's settled, then," Ginny said loudly with the same smile. "I'll see you around, Hannah. Congratulations on your new Pub!" She left the Leaky Cauldron and walked into Diagon Alley as if nothing extraordinary had just happened.

Hannah turned slowly to Tom, afraid she'd find him hurt and crumbling. Instead, he had a giant toothless grin on his face.

"About time, lass! I've been dropping hints to you for months that you should take over! I thought the goblins would run us out of here before you took charge!"

Hannah fixed him with huge eyes. Was he really saying...?

"Honestly, as if I could mix up good and bad Butterbeer!" he said under his breath as he turned back in the kitchen. "That was always on purpose..."


End file.
